2026 World Cup Bid Committee Identifies 44 Potential Host Cities
Posted On: August 15, 2017 By :
The 2026 FIFA World Cup bid committee representing the United States, Mexico and Canada has sent requests for information to 44 cities across the three nations to gauge their interest in hosting games should the bid be successful. Within those destinations, 49 venues were targeted to serve as potential hosts.
The document, sent to most major cities in the three countries, asks each city to declare its interest in being part of the bid by September 5, 2017. A short list of potential hosts is expected to be issued by late September, with the final bid expected to include 20–25 venues. If the North American bid is successful, it is expected that at least 12 locations would ultimately host matches in the tournament, although other cities would likely still be able to host the international broadcast center, team base camps or the final draw.
The formal bid from North America will be submitted by March 16, 2018, with a final decision expected in June. The North American bid will compete against a proposal from Morocco for the right to host.
“The host cities included in our bid will be critical to its success—not only because of their facilities and ability to stage major events, but because they are committed to further developing the sport of soccer by harnessing the impact of hosting a FIFA World Cup—and looking beyond the game itself to make a positive contribution to our communities and the world,” said United Bid Committee Executive Director John Kristick. “We have had a great response so far and we’re looking forward to working closely with each city and determining the best venues for our official bid that we’ll submit next year.”
The 2026 FIFA World Cup will be the first tournament to feature a 48-team format. All stadiums in the bid are required to have at least 40,000 seats for group-stage matches, and a seating capacity of at least 80,000 to be considered for the opening match and the final. The final rounds are expected to be contested in the United States if the bid is successful.
If they decide to be part of the bid, leaders in each of the identified cities will be asked to provide information about transportation infrastructure, past experience hosting major sporting and cultural events, available accommodations, environmental protection initiatives, potential venues and more. Potential host cities also must propose international-level training sites and locations for team base camps, and hotels for teams, staff and VIPs. Sustainable event management, aspirations to develop soccer and expected social impact from the event will also be considered.
The following cities and venues (with seating capacity) were identified by leaders of the North American bid:
United States
Atlanta, GA—Mercedes-Benz Stadium (75,000)
Baltimore, MD—M&T Bank Stadium (71,008)
Birmingham, AL—Legion Field (71,594)
Boston, MA—Gillette Stadium (65,892)
Charlotte, NC—Bank of America Stadium (75,400)
Chicago, IL—Soldier Field (61,500)
Cincinnati, OH—Paul Brown Stadium (65,515)
Cleveland, OH—FirstEnergy Stadium (68,710)
Dallas, TX—Cotton Bowl (92,100); Arlington, TX—AT&T Stadium (105,000)
Denver, CO—Sports Authority Field at Mile High (76,125)
Detroit, MI—Ford Field (65,000)
Green Bay, WI—Lambeau Field (81,441)
Houston, TX—NRG Stadium (71,500)
Indianapolis, IN—Lucas Oil Stadium (65,700)
Jacksonville, FL—EverBank Field (64,000)
Kansas City, MO—Arrowhead Stadium (76,416)
Las Vegas, NV—Raiders Stadium (72,000)
Los Angeles, CA—Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (78,500); LA Stadium at Hollywood Park (TBD); Rose Bowl (87,527)
Miami, FL—Hard Rock Stadium (65,767)
Minneapolis, MN—U.S. Bank Stadium (63,000)
Nashville, TN—Nissan Stadium (69,143)
New Orleans, LA—Mercedes-Benz Superdome (72,000)
New York/New Jersey (East Rutherford, NJ)—MetLife Stadium (82,500)
Orlando, FL—Camping World Stadium (65,000)
Philadelphia, PA—Lincoln Financial Field (69,328)
Phoenix, AZ —University of Phoenix Stadium (73,000)
Pittsburgh, PA—Heinz Field (68,400)
Salt Lake City, UT—Rice-Eccles Stadium (45,807)
San Antonio, TX—Alamodome (72,000)
San Diego, CA—Qualcomm Stadium (71,500)
San Francisco/San Jose, CA (Santa Clara, CA)—Levi’s Stadium (75,000)
Seattle, WA—CenturyLink Field (69,000)
Tampa, FL—Raymond James Stadium (73,309)
Washington, DC (Landover, MD)—FedEx Field (82,000)
Canada
Calgary, Alberta—McMahon Stadium (35,650)
Edmonton, Alberta—Commonwealth Stadium (56,335)
Montréal, Québec—Stade Olympique (61,004); Stade Saputo (20,801)
Ottawa, Ontario—TD Place Stadium (24,341)
Regina, Saskatchewan—Mosaic Stadium (30,048)
Toronto, Ontario—Rogers Centre (53,506); BMO Field (28,026)
Vancouver, British Columbia—BC Place (55,165)
Mexico
Guadalajara, Jalisco—Estadio Chivas (45,364)
Mexico City—Estadio Azteca (87,000)
Monterrey, Nuevo León—Estadio Rayados (52,237)
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